X955

Letters of William Hale White (Mark Rutherford)

1870-1910

From: 1870 To: 1910

The papers were deposited with Beds & Luton Archives Service by the Mark Rutherford Society in 2010. They were transcribed by Nick Wilde who introduces the collection: Following a letter to the Guardian about the omission of William Hale White from John Mullan’s book Anonymity: A Secret History of English Literature. A London Bookseller sent David French an email about a collection of letters he had in his possession written by WHW to Mrs Colenutt. David let me know and I contacted Nick Jacobs and together we met in Cecil Court and looked through the collection. Only a selection of these letters, and then often heavily edited by his second wife Dorothy, appeared in Letters to Three Friends (1924) a further sixty exist in the collection. It was thought at first one was missing but it was simply misplaced because of a 3 looked like an 8 in the date. We made an offer which was accepted and as a result of many kind donations by members they are now in the Society’s possession. Their ultimate home with be the Bedfordshire and Luton Archives and Records Service. I have completed the transcription of these and will pass them on once final checks are made. A ‘print on demand’ publisher Victorian Secrets which has already published the Autobiography and Deliverance has offered to make then available. This seems the best arrangement because the volume is unlikely to become a bestseller. These letters were written by William Hale White to Mrs Colenutt from January 23rd 1870 until 17th October 1910. Although that is a period of forty years the actual friendship lasted from the early 1850’s whilst Hale White was in Portsmouth where he became friends with Richard Colenutt. Mr Colenutt was a friend of his cousin William Chignell who was a preacher. Richard was twelve years his senior but Hale White saw in him a very like minded individual. Richard Colenutt had married Sarah Fabian Clay and, although some letters are written to Mr. Colenutt the majority are written to Mrs Colenutt. Hale White initially addressed her as “My dear Mrs Colenutt” but from 1883 he always addressed her as “My dear friend” and signed himself W. Hale White. This is a bit odd because he writes to the second of the Three Friends published in Letters To Three Friends as “My dear Miss Partridge” from 1893 until 1903 when it becomes “My dear Sophie” until they stop in 1912. Incidentally the letters to Philip Webb are all addressed to My Dear Webb and run from 1894 until February 1913. However he seems inordinately fond of Mrs Colenutt but seems to have both refrained from using her first name and from signing himself William. What seems odd is that the last letters to Mrs Colenutt seem to be written by a far frailer man than the letters to the other two correspondents at the time (1910) when the letters seem to stop. Perhaps it was Mrs Colenutt’s inability to read them that ended the correspondence. Nonetheless they are fascinating in a way although different from those written to the other correspondents. They are very more domestic in character and although they do touch on many serious subjects from literature the full letters are very concerned with family matters enquiring and informing about what is going on.

fonds

White, William Hale,
Rutherford, Mark

family correspondence, general correspondence